"Mad Dog" by MrSpeakers, modified Fostex T50RP review - Page 188

Quote:

Originally Posted by Clemmaster 

 

The 8x rule don't apply to the planar headphones which have (almost) purely resistive impedance (which does not vary with frequency).

What if I use it with a dynamic driver? I was planning on doing a comparison between the Mad Dogs and the K267's. I wanted both to be properly amped for the testing.

My big question is, how much of a difference will the 8x rule make on a dynamic driver 32 ohm like the AKG K267's? Just making sure before I sink in another 100 bucks (for the 1ohm mod). I just wanted both cans to be at their very best in this bout.

Quote:

Originally Posted by vaed 

Can anyone expand on their experience with the stax pads, and if they're worth the investment? I've heard they tighten everything and make the headphone even darker, but that's about it. I am absolutely in love with these headphones. They're very diplomatic!

Hi there, I've been wondering about the stax pads and Mad Dogs for a while now and so far, it seems like only MalVeauX has thorough experience with the combination. We exchanged a couple of PMs and Mal seems to think highly of them and with that I'm currently waiting for my shipments of the Omega2 pads and Mad Dog to arrive. 

I'm pretty busy as of late but I'd be happy to post some impressions and comparisons with the Dog Pads once they arrive.  

Quote:

Originally Posted by vaed 

Can anyone expand on their experience with the stax pads, and if they're worth the investment? I've heard they tighten everything and make the headphone even darker, but that's about it. I am absolutely in love with these headphones. They're very diplomatic!

Me: Mad Doggy Daddy, I wanna immerse myself in classical music!
Doggy Daddy: okay baby, here's a balanced spectrum and some awesome dynamics and accuracy

Me: Mad Doggy Daddy, I wanna jam out to some drum n bass!
Doggy Daddy: alright baby, here's a balanced spectrum and planar-level speed.

Me: Mad Doggy Daddy, I wanna rock out to some death metal!
Doggy daddy: yeah baby, here's a balanced spectrum, perfect midrange guitar meat and punchy percussion.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ryujen 

 

Hi there, I've been wondering about the stax pads and Mad Dogs for a while now and so far, it seems like only MalVeauX has thorough experience with the combination. We exchanged a couple of PMs and Mal seems to think highly of them and with that I'm currently waiting for my shipments of the Omega2 pads and Mad Dog to arrive. 

 

I'm pretty busy as of late but I'd be happy to post some impressions and comparisons with the Dog Pads once they arrive.  

I have a pair of MD and a pair of stax pads sitting around. I'll be home later this week and I'll give them a try and post results. My experience with the stax pads on other headphones is that they generally increase bass control but add a bit of treble. I'll try to actually listen and see what I find. 

First post to the forums, but I've been reading for a few years.

Back story:

Been a musician (not professional) for the majority of my life, but the pleasures of quality audio equipment didn't peak my interest, or match my pocket book, until just a few years ago. 

I mostly listen from the desktop I built. I bought the ATH-M50's as an intro pair because the price was right and the reviews qualified the purchase. I use Foobar2k with WASAPI plug-in from my on-board realtek. Now I'm looking to upgrade.

I listen to a wide range of music so the M50's worked well enough. I found the mids a little lacking, and the highs(especially in electronic music) without EQ adjustments to be a little harsh until I got a good 40+ hours into them. The sound stage also felt a little claustrophobic for some music but good for movies and decent for gaming. My real issue was comfort. The clamping (even after time and stretching) is still a little strong for my apparently gigantic dome . Heat is also an issue. I started off with "was" because I replaced the pads with the Beyer 250 velour pads and that worked wonders, but also has a few draw backs. Problems aside, I really enjoy their energy. Overall the M50's were a great step-up from my previous equipment, but now my new addiction....errr, hobby wants to take the next step. Anyway.

Purpose:

Back story aside, a fair amount of research has pointed me to the Mad Dogs. $500 is basically my ceiling. The MD's with the Magni/Modi seems like it would be a quality step up from where I am currently and right at my price point.

-- What are your thoughts?

Questions:

1. Can anyone comment on the MD's with just the Magni from an on-board sound card vs M/M combo?

2. Would an O2 DAC/AMP combo be worth the extra money over the M/M combo? Or other DAC/AMP combo in the $200ish range?

3. Am I taking too big a step up from the M50's to really appreciate the MD's?

4. Anyone know of a place in Orange County, California that I could preview some Mad Dogs?

Sorry the post is so long. I look forward to your feedback.

^^ I think that you've done your research and the choice you've already made would work very well for you. The MD is a better hp across the spectrum and the small schitt stack that you mention will power the hp nicely. The MD will isolate well and the clamp force of the headband can be adjusted for difference sized heads...both smaller and larger. So no worries there.

The MD is just more accurate and natural sounding than the m50's. I have no doubt that you'll enjoy it. They also have a 14 day return policy so don't worry too much about getting a demo pair. I bought mine as a demo pair, but knew after a few hours that there was no way I could return them. 

Welcome to headfi and "sorry about your wallet." 

I would comment that it's possible you wouldn't notice as much of a difference when you upgrade as those with more experience in headphones (when I upgraded so many years ago to the ATH-M50, I thought it sounded the same as a little WeSC on-ear I owned at the time), but since you seem to have a good ear and know precisely what you want in  your new pair of headphones, I think you'll be able to tell the difference.

I also concur with the two previous opinions.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamakahah 

First post to the forums, but I've been reading for a few years.

 

Back story:

Been a musician (not professional) for the majority of my life, but the pleasures of quality audio equipment didn't peak my interest, or match my pocket book, until just a few years ago. 

 

I mostly listen from the desktop I built. I bought the ATH-M50's as an intro pair because the price was right and the reviews qualified the purchase. I use Foobar2k with WASAPI plug-in from my on-board realtek. Now I'm looking to upgrade.

 

I listen to a wide range of music so the M50's worked well enough. I found the mids a little lacking, and the highs(especially in electronic music) without EQ adjustments to be a little harsh until I got a good 40+ hours into them. The sound stage also felt a little claustrophobic for some music but good for movies and decent for gaming. My real issue was comfort. The clamping (even after time and stretching) is still a little strong for my apparently gigantic dome . Heat is also an issue. I started off with "was" because I replaced the pads with the Beyer 250 velour pads and that worked wonders, but also has a few draw backs. Problems aside, I really enjoy their energy. Overall the M50's were a great step-up from my previous equipment, but now my new addiction....errr, hobby wants to take the next step. Anyway.

 

Purpose:

Back story aside, a fair amount of research has pointed me to the Mad Dogs. $500 is basically my ceiling. The MD's with the Magni/Modi seems like it would be a quality step up from where I am currently and right at my price point.

-- What are your thoughts?

 

Questions:

1. Can anyone comment on the MD's with just the Magni from an on-board sound card vs M/M combo?

2. Would an O2 DAC/AMP combo be worth the extra money over the M/M combo? Or other DAC/AMP combo in the $200ish range?

3. Am I taking too big a step up from the M50's to really appreciate the MD's?

4. Anyone know of a place in Orange County, California that I could preview some Mad Dogs?

 

Sorry the post is so long. I look forward to your feedback.

I went through the same upgrade path myself; M50 to MadDogs with Dog Pads and a Magni (although I have since upgraded from there). I'm certain you'll appreciate the upgrade, but that doesn't necessarily mean you'll like the MDs (not that they are bad, but not to my taste, hence the further upgrade). I didn't worry about the DAC at the time because I was happy with the output from my MacBook Pro. In my opinion, you can forgo worrying about the DAC portion of your chain in this consideration for the moment, but I don't worry about trying to "match" a DAC to my cans. I can also say without hesitation that the Magni is a great purchase and an excellent, inexpensive, neutral amplifier for most headphone needs (again, regardless of whether you choose the MDs or not, but it drives them well). The Magni from my MacBook without a DAC works great to my ears with the MDs or the M50s (which actually did gain some detail and texture from amping for me). 

The MDs are going to give you more detail, flat response and the most darn comfortable headphones ever, but what I missed from the M50s (the only thing) was the punch. The MDs are very laid back plus flat compared to the M50's recessed mids. To my ears the MDs also have a very subtle plastic sound that comes out mostly in highly dynamic and complex music such as classical symphonies that kept me from totally getting lost in the music. Others will tell you I'm looney, that's fine. We all have different ears. I don't know where you can demo them. Try looking out for a headphone meet. Also, Dan has a really good return policy (though he's really cool and I don't want to take advantage of him). But you can buy them and return them if you don't like them.

^^ Yes, you're looney.  The MD has a very natural and organic sound, comparable to much higher end cans such as the lcd2. I've never heard anything remotely plastic about them whatsoever. They have an ortho dynamic sound across the spectrum that is easily recognizable...so I have to take exception to the plastic comment. I don't hear it that way at all.

Regarding the "lack of punch" mentioned above. While the comments are accurate about the MD as flat and neutral, what happens with the MD is that they don't add coloration ( ie extra bass) to music that doesn't have it. The m50 adds warmth/bass to most music. If that's what you like and what you're looking for then you've found your cup of tea. The MD's will punch when the music calls for it. 

I still would suggest to buy and try it. If it's not for you, then you can return it for a refund. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by MattTCG 

^^ The denon is easy to drive but the MD is somewhat tougher. Get yourself a decent amp to pair with them and I think you'll be surprised at just how good they will be. 

I listened to MD powered by Lyr. They definitely opened up a lot, however the details/resolution did not really improve much. Can anyone please compare MD with any high-resolving HP on Talk Talk's Spirit of Eden? My MD hides almost all tiny sounds on the beginning of the first track comparing to Denon's AHD600. Do I expect too much!? Thank you!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamakahah 

 

Questions:

1. Can anyone comment on the MD's with just the Magni from an on-board sound card vs M/M combo?

2. Would an O2 DAC/AMP combo be worth the extra money over the M/M combo? Or other DAC/AMP combo in the $200ish range?

3. Am I taking too big a step up from the M50's to really appreciate the MD's?

4. Anyone know of a place in Orange County, California that I could preview some Mad Dogs?

1) On board sound cards/dacs vary widely, even within the same line (for instance creative marks some cards as x-fi even though they aren't). Asus is the way to go for musical on board sound cards. However, I've found external dacs just sound better (yes, even better than the XONAR Essence STX) due to being completely external from the computer so there's less noise from video cards, other PCI cards, etc. plus they generally use higher quality components than what you can get on board (not to say you can't roll your own opamps on the X-Fi Titanium HD and XONAR Essence STX, but at that point, you might as well buy a dac since the sound card itself is $180, not to mention high quality opamps). That all having been said, I prefer my M/M + MD to my X-Fi Titanium HD + Magni + MD. I haven't rolled any opamps because i mostly use the Titanium HD for gaming and it's already very well suited for that stock.

2) No. The ODAC sounds a bit more transparent than the Modi, but the Magni is a better amp than the O2 for the MD because it supplies more power. If you wanted to get the best neutral sound combo, you can get the ODAC and the Magni. But the stack of Schiit is a really good looking combo and i'd rather live with a slight change in tone that is nearly inaudible (slightly warmer and bassier) for the aesthetics. Plus the MD is already so neutral that the M/M helps bring out some more musicality and make it more fun to listen to for long periods.

3) I stepped up from the HFI-580 and SR225i. Both of the aforementioned cans are gone now (sold 225i, gave 580 to my dad who loves them). At first, I thought the MD was dry but I warmed up to them and wouldn't dream of going back. The first time you hear new things in your music, you'll be hooked. You might not appreciate the MD at first because it won't sound anything like your M50's (won't have a ton of bass punch, won't be as fun as the M50), but again, once it reveals new aspects of your music, you'll wonder how you made it this long without hearing it properly. The bass isn't punchy but it is ever present and extends well. It sounds good, despite not hitting hard. These cans are not made for bassy music. Might be prudent to keep the M50's around for any electronic or hip hop you listen to.

Everyone's ears are different. I'll echo that Dan has a great return policy and you can try them out. Worst case, you don't like them and you're out a couple bucks for shipping. Just make sure you amp them properly. Don't expect to drive these straight out of your computer and be wowed with the sound.